*7 Days of Yoga

Yoga sparks my creativity. I’m sure there’s some scientific/spiritual rationale of which I’m unaware, but for me, the proof is production. With all my Unhappy Wifemarketing, it became challenging to write anything new, so I decided to engage in seven days of yoga. Consequently, I attained more than creativity.

Monday, October 31st(Yoga Den, Mandarin 7:45-9:00 P.M.) It slipped my mind that today was Halloween, so I almost didn’t make it. I wanted to pass out the four bags of peanut and peanut butter M&Ms that Dwight’s eyes had signaled was too much. But I’d promised myself attendance at Sun Flow Yin. I would have to rely on my nonsocial daughters to take the lead. One little boy showed up right before I left. Turns out he was the only trick-or-treater we got this year, so I didn’t miss anything and my daughters didn’t have to interact with people.

Today’s Lesson: Follow your instinct.

Tuesday, November 1st(LA Fitness, Kernan, 9:45-10:45 A.M.) I slept like a six-month old baby snuggled in between co-sleeping parents. I’m attributing a good night’s rest to the previous night’s yoga. However, practicing back-to-back made me nervous. My anxiety floated away once I noticed a guy doing downward facing dog in his drawers. I was slightly distracted, not because anything showed, but because I kept wondering if those were indeed his skivvies. They were. The bright blue band around the top gave it away. I didn’t think my yoga crew noticed because there were no side eyes or eyebrow raises. He and I walked out together and he engaged me in conversation. Underwear guy’s name is Joe. He’d lost his wife seven years ago in a drunk driving accident. She left him with a set of twin boys and a daughter to raise. Without yoga, he believed he would’ve died too.

Lesson: You never know what someone’s gone through, so treat them with kindness.

Wednesday, November 2nd(Yoga Den, Mandarin 6:30-7:30 P.M.) I loathe Wednesdays. On this day, I drive two hours to teach one class that lasts an hour and fifteen minutes. The angst of the drive begins Tuesday night and settles into my consciousness, making for a stressful morning and grumpy day. But today felt a little different. Maybe back-to-back yoga helped me maintain peace. After class, I usually drive to main campus and participate in a meeting, work in my office until 5:00, and then leave. The chair cancelled today’s meeting, so I graded papers until 3:45 and made it back home just in time for Mind-Body yoga. To be honest, I chose this yoga because the time was appropriate. But the lesson about mind-body connection was also what I needed to hear. Hopefully, I can put it into practice this coming Wednesday.

Lesson: Everything begins in the mind.

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Thursday, November 3rd(LA Fitness, Kernan, Jacksonville, Florida 9:45-10:45 A.M.) Welp, my yoga crew did notice that Joe and his undies. They were in a circle discussing it as I rolled out my mat. By the time I returned from the restroom, someone had approached Joe about it. I came back just in time to hear this:

Joe: Y’all shouldn’t be looking at me anyways. Yoga is supposed to be a meditation. Y’all should be meditating. Everybody in here should be able to do yoga naked ‘cause we should all be so focused on ourselves.

Mrs. Gail: That’s what I tried to tell ‘em Joe!

I politely stretched into child’s pose and minded my own business.

Lesson: Focus on yourself.

Friday, November 4th(Yoga Den, Mandarin, Jacksonville, Florida 9:15-10:45 A.M.) I almost didn’t make it today you guys. The bed was so warm and cozy. And I thought to myself, KG, you’ve already done four days. Isn’t that good enough? Then, that same nagging feeling I get when I make self-promises began to surface. It’s familiar. I cannot tell myself I’m going to do a thing and not follow through. Off to yoga I went. This isn’t any old type of yoga. The instructor begins by playing a banjo and we all chant Om Namah Shivaya. Then, we chant three OMs and begin our practice. It’s intense. Today, I almost threw up. I know that’s not a good yoga practice if you almost hurl. And it certainly goes against what you’re supposed to be practicing in the first place. I thought I was done overachieving, but this proved otherwise. Every now and then, I still unconsciously overextend myself; yoga is no different. I’m working on it. After Savasana, she plays the banjo again and we do three more OMs. This particular practice is my favorite one, but it usually doesn’t come behind four other yoga days.

Lesson: Be true to yourself by honoring your word. Be mindful.

Saturday, November 5th (LA Fitness, Lakewood, Jacksonville, Florida 11:00 A.M.-12:00 P.M.) On Saturdays, I wake up sans alarm clock. I lie in bed, blog a little, write a little, and then decide what I’m going to do. Not today. Friday afternoon, my goddaughter texted to inform me that the local bookstore had run out of copies of The Unhappy Wife.

“So I can come Monday?” I asked Jen, the owner.

“We’re open Saturday and Sunday at 9:00 A.M.” she replied.

I broke my usual routine and was at the bookstore by 9:00 A.M.

“Thank you so much,” she started, “Really appreciate you.”

“No. Thank you,” I smiled.

We were helping one another. Because of her, I didn’t have to sell books out of my trunk, and because of me, she was gaining more customers and revenue. This was the win-win I’d heard so much about.

Afterwards, I went to yoga.

Lesson: If you want something, you have to be willing to break self-made traditions.

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Sunday, November 6th (Walk with Dwight) By this day, I was tired of yoga. My shoulders felt as if I’d been lifting weights all day. My core was a bit tighter, but hurt when I bent to the side. My legs felt as if I’d done 100 squats each day. So Dwight and I took our usual Sunday walk.

Lesson: Know when to listen to your body, as opposed to your mind.

My creativity is back, but quite honestly, three days worth of yoga is quite enough for me.

I do yoga in my home with my 4 year old and husband about 3-4 times weekly. It’s a nice way for us all to spend time together, exercise, and be in the comfort of our own home. Now the trick is to teach my daughter about meditation!

Brook with no “e” I’m Katherin with no “e”! I wrote an entire post about it because it annoys me when people misspell my name! Anywho, thanks for reading and commenting here. It’s impressive that your 4-year-old does yoga with you! I think teaching your daughter how to meditate at such a young age is really important and will probably take her far in life.

I do yoga everyday (well at least I try to) and it exercises my core really well and I love it – eases the stress! I would love it if you could leave me a like or follow me as I’m trying to grow my account with nice people 🙂

This is a timely article. I too have wanted to do yoga but I’m so inflexible and impatient I’m very skeptical. However, I need to practice meditating and maybe this might be a good place to start. Do you have any advice for more seasoned beginners? Oh, and I really enjoyed your lessons learned.

Hey Steph! The more you do it, the better you’ll get, kind of like anything really. What I find people have to get over is the idea that anyone else is looking at you. This is the first thing I learned. No one could possibly be paying attention to what you’re doing because they’re too busy trying not to fall over/hold a pose themselves lol. It really has been a great way for me to learn not to care about what anyone thinks and to only focus on myself. The other thing is that each day is different depending on what’s going on with you or your body in that moment. Yoga, for me has been a great mirror of actual life. It’ll definitely help with mediating because breathing through the practice and focusing at the end without falling asleep are both a part of doing yoga.

Okay. I’ve talked on enough lol Best of luck and thanks for the compliment 🙂

I remember when I was little…I and my brother finished watching high school musical . U know the part in prt 2 or 3…where the mom of (the rich girl…just forgot the name) was practicing yoga….she looked so cool so we decided to try it out. Long story short, we were a mass of legs flying and heads hitting the ground. Great post

I was doing so good with my Yoga at the start of the year, but I’ve fallen off 🤦🏾‍♀️. I’ve only ever done it at-home using YouTube, but this post is making me rethink that. Maybe I should try a studio…find some accountability partners and some inspiration too (Joe was a wise man). Love the lessons you took away from each practice.

I’ve heard of people doing it like that, but I’m not sure I’d get the same effect (personally). I suppose as long as it’s working for you, then keep at it, no matter where it is. And, yes…I agree. Joe recently died…I just found out. So, now I feel as if this is a nice memoriam.

Yoga is something I really would like to get back in to, but perhaps in small amounts – this sort of intensity would wear me down quite quickly I think! Certainly very interesting to read your experiences, how it may have helped calm some anxiety too, and I love the lessons you took away from your days. The story of Underwear guy Joe is incredibly sad, but it also shows the power of something like yoga and of connecting to others to keep you going and pull you through even the toughest, darkest of times. xx

Because I’m familiar with your health via your blog, I’m sure it would. It also kind of depends on the type. Restorative seems to be just that…restorative lol In terms of Joe, I agree. In fact, oddly, he died just last week, so now I’m guessing this is a kind of nice memory of who he was.

I think I’m going to try out yoga tomorrow. So many lessons learned in the midst of meditation. I actually get points through my insurance for practicing meditation 3 times a week, and I NEVER do it. Glad to see that it helped get your creative juices flowing!

Thank you! I’m glad to hear it. I know one of the yogas really focuses on opening up your chakras and listening to your inner self, but I stopped trying to figure out how the others contribute lol Thanks for stopping by, reading and commenting.

You go Joe! (What a great lesson in understanding differences and supporting others because we don’t know what they might be going through.) Thanks again. I am trying to figure out how to post your article on my “Post I like” Widget. That widget isn’t posting but I am going to keep trying, as I think your article is just great. 🙂

Thanks Meghan! After that day, Joe has practiced in his undies, front and center where we can all practice being more mindful 😉 Please do! I’m sure you understand how beneficial it is. Hope you’re having a happy holiday season doing whatever you please.

I love the detail in your writing and how you communicated the effectiveness of yoga while actually writing very little about the practice of it. You are a wonderful writer and I’m not surprised your book sold out!!!

After 3 months of doing ashtanga once a week, I started to do things I never thought I would do one day: dancing, drawing, hiking… you name it. As a teacher myself, my courses became more creative… in a way I can see me writing your blog. Thank you so much

I started yoga in my late teens. It saved me, although I did not know it at the time. Looking back I realised that it kept me functioning. We had an amazing yoga teacher and I guess I had a lot of enthusiasm then – and more energy! 🙂 Not sure I could manage 7 days in a row – well done you and thanks for sharing.

On another note I loved the time differences exchange between you and Mek. Now I don’t feel such a twit for not being able to get my head around it. LOL Minus 4 hours, add 5, do what???

How wonderful to have started such a meaningful practice in your teens! I can’t imagine where I’d be if I would’ve begun decades ago. But, we find things when we find them, I guess. I’m sure that I can’t manage seven days in a row, as of today lol AND Thanks!

Girl…you see Mek over there adding and subtracting hours, while I’m like, “Siri, what time is it in Australia???” No, I literally Google the words most of the time lol I always forget to find out and end up waking her up.

Kathy you have made me chuckle. Seriously what is going on in Australia with “time”. It’s a headache working out the time difference and at one point I thought it was ME. But now I know Dr Garland (of the 3 degrees!):) can’t work it out either. I’m like whatever!!!
Yes, starting yoga when I was 19 was probably the best thing I ever did. coming from a very unsettled background it must have staved off the chronic anxiety which manifested when I was a little older and had actually stopped doing it. Maybe I ought to start again …
I shouldn’t worry too much about not being able to keep up a 7 day regime – I’m sure once a week is fine.

Kathy, terrific post about your yoga marathon! I loved the insights into each day, the thought of naked yoga had me giggling, definitely a time to tune out and go into child pose. So happy it helped with your creativity and perhaps three times a week is something to consider? Wow! 😀😀 Congratulations on the shop selling out of your book – brilliant news for both you and the shop store owner! Hope you got to celebrate a little.

Well, Dwight’s bday was Sunday, so I just rolled a celebration into that (in my mind). Mrs. Gail actually went on to describe how she and her husband were nudist for eight years…I tried to ignore her conversation, until she got to the part about having breakfast as a nudist lol good grief! Yes, definitely no more than 3 times a week.

I really enjoyed reading this, Kathrin. I liked going on your yoga journey with you. I used to be a yoga addict, at the studio 3 and 4 times a week, up at 5:15AM for my morning practice. I’m even certified to teach it, though I don’t have time to anymore. I’ve recently committed to at least once per week at the studio, preferably twice, and actually made it twice last week! Your post has inspired me to go twice again this week. Thanks.

I love Joe’s reply to the group- i twnd to close my eyes as much as possible. Well done on all that yoga- it is definitely transformative. I like your description of sleeping like a baby snuggled up between co sleeping parents…sounds so snug 😊 Oh, and well done on selling out at the bookstore!

I’m up cause it’s MORNING first of 3 days of full time writing…Haha I’m normally up way earlier than that message! I did yoga for first time in 2 weeks yesterday- was good to be back. ..public holidays and training courses at work got in the way.

Ha yeah, after i posted that comment I realised that it’s now 16 hours diff. What I do to make it easier on my brain is minus 4 to whatever the time is here, and take it as the opposite of here, so right now here is 8:34 am so minus four and opposite – is 4:34 pm for you! Similarly for you, add 4 to your time and take opposite haha. It was easier when we only had a 14 hour diff cause more of our daytime overlapped…Okay, seriously need to get back to my full time NaNo mode…later!

I really like how you put the lessons you learned from each day up. “Lesson: You never know what someone’s gone through, so treat them with kindness.” Is something that I have been working on myself. It took me forever to realize that everybody is going through things and need to be treated as such. I was and still am so gung-ho on how I think people should move, but sometimes they just can’t move like that. And I should’t think they have to. People are going through mental, physical and emotional pain that they may hide very well.

Thank you for your kind words! It took me a long time to realize this. I am still working to remove that fault within myself. I can see my fault but if I am to be honest, I am young and bullheaded. I still think I can control things and I can’t. Even though I am saying this now, I still think that I can. I have a lot of work to do.

You are welcome. It takes a very wise person to recognise (I’m not going to call it a fault) 🙂 areas in which they need to develop self. You have every right to be young and bull-headed – that’s what youth is for. You don’t however have to stay that way. Keep working on it – you sound like a fine young person.

Nice! I have a friend that recommended I do yoga. I know very little, if anything at all, about it. It is important to bring mind and body more in unison, as the daily hustles and bustles separate them. After reading this, I am definitely considering it more! Thanks for the inspiration!

Oh I highly recommend it. Is helped me in my daily life. I find myself taking a few breaths instead of “going off on people” lol but try a few out first. Like I’ve shown here, they’re not all the same and you’re welcome 🙏🏾